Croutons, Bend Oregon

Croutons on Century Drive on the west side of Bend always seems to be a popular spot. The parking lot always appears full whenever I drive by...or is that because they have one of the worst parking lot setups ever? Who has the worst parking in that part of town? Parilla? Longboard Louis? Mother's? Bagel Stop? Victorian Cafe?

Anyway, the day we went to Croutons it was after the lunch rush so we figured we'd have an easier time getting in and out than normal. They get pretty busy during lunch so calling in orders ahead of time is recommended. Also, it looks like they are working on their site to accept online orders soon so look for that.

We were right, it wasn't that busy and we didn't have to wait long to get our food. As I stood at the register looking over the menu and listening to the wife order her half sandwich and a salad combo for $7.25 I thought it sounded good. But those combos tend to be rip offs. Small salad and a skimpy sandwich for more than it's worth.

I asked if the portions on the combo were ample and the nice gal said that it's actually pretty big. She was right.


The last time I visited Croutons the lady next to our table ordered the buffalo chicken salad and it smelled sooo good. I vowed to get it the next time I went and since I'm still on my hot wing kick, I thought it was a great idea. Since I got a specialty salad, the combo was a dollar more so my lunch was $8.25 but look what I got. The buffalo chicken salad above and the "Californian Panini" (as listed on their website) below. Or should I say the Sierra Smoked Turkey (as it's listed in the menu for the local Croutons) in order to keep BendBubble2 from going off on me for mentioning California.


The wife got the same buffalo chicken salad and then this Granny Smith Chicken Salad Pita.

Eh. It was actually pretty good but not for me. Bacon, turkey, and then chicken on the salad...three animals woohoo! Vegetables are what FOOD eats!

Ok, I have to bring this up because I found it rather amusing. We're at Croutons...and do you notice anything missing from the salad above? The wife and I were enjoying our salads and we both agreed that they were good but missing something. Missing that crunch. I reread the menu and noticed that we were without our Cornbread Croutons...you forgot our croutons?!? How is this possible? You'd think that they would have bowls of croutons on the table like El Caporal dishes out the chips and salsa (best in town). You're Croutons! That's your thing. It's what you do.

I don't even like cornbread but I wanted some croutons on my salad. I went up and politely asked (yes politely, I don't go off when something is wrong with my order, I make mistakes too...very rarely...very...rarely) for a cup of croutons for our salads. After adding those to the mix, it was probably the best salad I've had. I don't eat that many salads unless you put Taco in the name...mmmm taco salad!

Croutons is great food for a decent price and great portions. It's not a mystery why they are so popular and their tiny parking lot is always overflowing.

Croutons
335 Southwest Century Dr.
Bend, OR
330-1133
http://www.croutonsinc.com/bend/main.html